Okay, this post is going to be really short because I’m on deadline and my revisions are due back to my editor Julie Sturgeon by Saturday. Many readers ask me how I handle editing and revising my manuscripts. I have decided to reveal a few of my deepest secrets.
Some of my editing strategies for The Last Crossing:
1. Set the timer on my iPhone for 30 minutes so I get up and move around. It’s good for my health and clears my mind. Plus, potty break. (amended: Pay attention when the timer goes off.)
2. Set my iPhone on the bathroom counter so I must get up and actually pay attention to it when it goes off in 30 minutes instead of just turning off the timer and continuing to work until I have to do the bladder two-step on my way to said bathroom.
3. Dammit doll. Some things need no explanation.
4. Use sticky note flags on a1969 calendar to map out the scenes in my book. I’m a pantser; I pay no attention to what day it is as I write my story. But it’s good to know that when I’m revising.
5. Chocolate cf.#3
6. Staff meetings. Rich has been incredibly patient with me during this editing cycle. Incredibly. Patient. He’d listen to me go on and on in debrief sessions. He started calling our sessions “staff meetings.” He started including cocktails.
Feel free to adopt and/or adapt any or all of the above strategies during your editing process. Except for Rich. He’s mine.
Impressed with my work ethic? I hope you’ll be impressed with my story. Pre-order your copy of The Last Crossing and start reading on Nov. 30.
I got such a kick out of your “Secret Strategies for Handling Edits!” You are so witty and clever! Love it!! I think I need a Dammit Doll, too! Lol
Thank you for your kind words, Kathy. Maybe Santa will bring you a Dammit Doll. It helps me release a lot of tension 🙂
Thanks, Debra. Oh, no! I can only imagine what happened with the bottle of solution. Post-It notes are wonderful for plotting, aren’t they? Thanks for stopping by.
I use the post-it-note system too. At one time I used a whiteboard laying on my desk. A bottle of the solution used for cleaning the board had a loose lid, and well you can see where this is headed. Thus, post-it-notes are now my best friend. And in addition to a getting to read a great blog, I learned a new word. Pantser. Much better than what I am usually called for procrastinating.